Whenever the Chicago Cubs are home on a Friday, you can count on them playing in the afternoon and on national TV. That’s the case this Friday as the Cubbies welcome the San Diego Padres for the first time this season. Chicago is favored on the MLB Lines behind Jon Lester.

How to Bet Padres vs Cubs MLB Odds & Game Info

• When: Friday, 2:20 PM ET
• Where: Wrigley Field
• Probable pitchers (away/home): Eric Lauer/Jon Lester
• TV: MLB Extra Innings
• Live Stream: MLB.tv
• Radio: 670 The Score
• MLB Odds: Chicago Cubs -160

Why Bet on San Diego?

In 2018, the Friars went 2-5 against Chicago, with both of their wins on the season coming at Wrigley Field. That that four-game series at the Cubs, 5, the Padres slashed .301/.348/.503 and hit 9 doubles, 1 triple and 6 homers with 23 RBI and 24 runs scored, averaging 6.0 runs per game.

Did you know the Padres are the only current franchise to never have one of their pitchers throw a no-hitter? Somewhat came close to happening on Wednesday as rookie Chris Paddack took a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Starlin Castro broke up the no-hitter by cracking a solo home run with two outs in the eighth inning. It was the 21st occasion in which the Padres have carried a no-hitter into the 8th inning-or-later all-time.

The Padres are on the fringes of Wild-Card contention but they may decide to sell ahead of the trade deadline and certainly closer Kirby Yates would bring back a nice return. Yates has been perhaps the top closer in baseball this year, leading the majors with 31 saves in 33 chances and a 1.07 ERA. He has 67 strikeouts against nine walks and has allowed just one home run in 42 innings.

Padres lefty Eric Lauer (5-7, 4.04) Lauer missed his last turn through the rotation after opening the second half on the bereavement list (his father died) He finished the first half with three starts of one earned run, including a gem at Dodger Stadium in which he pitched through an earthquake.

This will be Lauer’s 18th start of the season, tied with Joey Lucchesi for the most on the club. It will be Lauer’s 2nd career start against the Cubs. He tossed 2.0 innings of 5-hit, 5-run ball in the Padres’ 7-4 defeat on July 15, 2018.

Team Stats

• Runs: 4.42
• Hits: 8.11
• Walks: 2.93
• Strike Outs: 9.71

• Runs: 4.91
• Hits: 8.72
• Walks: 2.58
• Strike Outs: 8.76

Why Bet on Chicago?

The Cubs are 5-1 since the All-Star break to take a slightly bigger lead in the NL Central. Former NL MVP Kris Bryant is rolling right now. He was 2-for-3 with a homer and two runs in Wednesday’s win vs. the Reds. It was Bryant’s 127th career homer, passing Andy Pafko for 17th-most in franchise history. Bryant has homered in consecutive games and four of his last nine games.

The Cubs are tied for the major league lead with three players (Bryant, Javier Baez, Kyle Schwarber) with at least 20 homers, joining the Braves, Rockies, Dodgers, and Padres. Bryant is batting .377 (23-for-61) with five homers in his last 16 games. The Cubs have won consecutive series for the first time since June 4-9 vs. Colorado (2-1) and St. Louis (3-0). The Cubs have homered in seven-straight games, including 10 homers in their last five games.

The Cubs’ Jon Lester allowed three runs on eight hits with no walks and six strikeouts across 6.2 innings to earn a victory against the Pirates on Saturday. The veteran starred on the mound and at the plate, driving in as many runs as he allowed in the victory. Lester completed four scoreless innings, as the Cubs built a 10-0 lead, but the Pirates tallied a run in each of Lester’s last three frames, two of which coming on solo homers.

Lester improved to 9-6 and owns a 3.74 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and 99 strikeouts in 101 innings this season. The left-hander has gone 4-1 with a 2.97 ERA, 30 strikeouts and six walks in 30 1/3 innings in his last five outings. Lester is one 3-1 with a 3.98 ERA (18 ER/40.2 IP) in seven career starts against the Padres. He has gone 1-1 with a 5.24 ERA (13 ER/22.1 IP) in four career starts against the Padres at Wrigley Field.

Team Stats

• Runs: 5.09
• Hits: 8.57
• Walks: 3.83
• Strike Outs: 9.06

• Runs: 4.39
• Hits: 8.35
• Walks: 3.31
• Strike Outs: 8.51

Padres vs Cubs MLB Betting Trends

• Cubs are 8-2 SU in Lester’s past 10 at home & 6-3-1 over/under in these games
• Padres are 6-4 SU and 5-4-1 over/under in Lauer’s past 10 on the road
• Padres are 1-5 SU in their last 6 games against an opponent in the National League
• The total has gone UNDER in 6 of San Diego’s last 7 games on the road
• Cubs are 6-1 SU in their last 7 games at home
• The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Chi Cubs’ last 8 games when playing at home against San Diego

Expert Final Score Prediction for Padres vs Cubs

San Diego Padres 4 – Chicago Cubs 5